Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Drug abuse has a wide range of definitions related to taking a psychoactive drug or performance enhancing drug for a non-therapeutic or non-medical effect. All of these definitions imply a negative judgement of the drug use in question (compare with the term responsible drug use for alternative views). Some of the drugs most often associated with this term include alcohol, amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, methaqualone, and opium alkaloids. Use of these drugs may lead to criminal penalty in addition to possible physical, social, and psychological harm, both strongly depending on local jurisdiction. Other definitions of drug abuse fall into four main categories: public health definitions, mass communication and vernacular usage, medical definitions, and political and criminal justice definitions.An estimated 4.7% of the global population aged 15 to 64, or 185 million people, consume illicit drugs annually.

As described in the DSM-IV, is a psychiatric diagnosis describing the use of alcoholic beverages despite negative consequences. It is differentiated from alcohol dependence by the lack of symptoms such as tolerance and withdrawal. Alcohol abuse is sometimes referred to by the less specific term alcoholism. However, many definitions of alcoholism exist, and only some are compatible with alcohol abuse.

There are currently approximately 9 million alcoholics in the United States alone, with comparable numbers in other countries. According to Max Fisher, the author of How I Stopped Drinking, there is little if any difference between the terms alcohol abuse, alcoholic, and alcoholism. Or, significant correlations exist between alcohol abuse and other substance abuse disorders.

Treatment can vary for Alcohol Abuse but there are many programs that exist from prevention to age and gender specific rehab centers.Many times there are abuse issues associated with alcoholism and group treatment entirely composed of women, for example, can help tend to issues surrounding male abusers. Rehabilitation centers are recommended for detoxification as there can be serious physical effects, including death, if treated improperly.